韓亞悲劇:空難陰影拖累韓亞航空增長前景

The crash landing of an Asiana Airlines jet at San Francisco on Saturday has raised concerns about the South Korean carrier’s safety record at a time when it was already struggling financially.

韓亞航空(Asiana Airlines)一架客機上週六在舊金山降落時失事，令人對這家已經在財務上掙扎的韓國航空公司的安全記錄感到擔憂。

The accident, which killed two Chinese teenagers, could undermine the carrier’s expansion to serve the growing trans-Pacific demand from passengers in China and southeast Asia. It comes as the lossmaking airline is already suffering from weak cargo demand and high oil prices.

導致兩名中國少女罹難的這起事故，可能影響該航空公司的擴張計劃，這些計劃的目的是滿足中國及東南亞乘客對跨太平洋航班不斷增長的需求。事故發生之際，這家虧損的航空公司已經在遭受貨運需求疲弱和油價高企的打擊。

Asiana said the crash landing had not yet had a big effect on bookings, but industry watchers say the company’s reputation is likely to take a hit because the initial focus has been on the pilots’ handling of the landing in the final moments before the crash.

韓亞航空表示，降落事故尚未對機票預訂量產生重大影響，但行業觀察人士表示，該公司的聲譽很可能受損，因爲事故調查的初步焦點是飛行員在失事前最後幾秒鐘對飛機降落的操作。

Lee Gang-guk, who is believed to have been at the controls at the time of landing, was still in training on the Boeing 777 and only had 43 hours flying time on the aircraft.

據信在降落時擔任機長的李強國（音，Lee Gang-guk）仍在接受駕駛波音(Boeing) 777的訓練，在該型飛機上只有43小時的駕駛經驗。

“The investigation will certainly increase concerns over the airline’s safety,” said Song Jae-hak, head of research at Woori Investment & Securities. “There are a lot of trans-Pacific passengers at the Incheon Airport but the recent accident could make Chinese customers become reluctant to take Asiana flights.”

“調查肯定會加劇人們對該航空公司安全的擔憂，”韓國友利投資證券(Woori Investment & Securities)研究主管Song Jae-hak表示。“仁川機場(Incheon Airport)有很多跨太平洋乘客，但最近發生的事故可能使中國顧客變得不願搭乘韓亞的航班。”

Asiana’s president, Yoon Young-doo, said on Monday that media reports blaming the pilot for the fatal crash were “intolerable”.

韓亞航空總裁尹永鬥(Yoon Young-doo)週一表示，將這起致命事故歸咎於飛行員的媒體報道是“不能忍受的”。

“It’s a training that is common in the global aviation industry. All responsibilities lie with the instructor captain,” Mr Yoon said, adding that Mr Lee had been accompanied by a trainer with more than 3,000 hours on Boeing 777s.

“這種訓練在全球航空業是常見的。全部責任由教練機長承擔，”尹永鬥表示。他補充稱，陪同李強國的是一名有3000多小時波音777駕駛經驗的教練。

However, travel agents in Seoul say they are receiving inquiries from customers concerned about the airline’s safety. “We have not seen any cancellations yet but customers are checking the type of aeroplane they will ride,” says Shin Sang-chul at Onnuri Tour. “Some customers seem to want to avoid travelling with Asiana.”

不過，首爾的旅行社表示，他們接到了擔憂該航空公司安全的顧客的詢問。“我們尚未看到任何取消訂座的情況，但顧客想知道他們將乘坐哪一種型號的飛機，”Onnuri Tour的Shin Sang-chul說。“一些顧客似乎想要避免搭乘韓亞的航班。”

Saturday’s crash was the airline’s third fatal accident and the second involving passengers since the company began operations in 1988. Two crew members were killed in July 2011 when a Boeing 747 cargo aircraft crashed into the East China Sea after a fire on the main cargo deck.

上週六的失事是韓亞航空發生的第三起致命事故，也是該公司自1988年投入運營以來第二起有乘客罹難的致命事故。2011年，一家波音747貨運飛機的主貨艙起火，飛機墜入東海，導致兩名機組人員喪生。

In July 1993, an Asiana Boeing 737 on route from Seoul in bad weather flew into a hillside on its approach to Mokpo, the southern South Korean city, killing 64 passengers and four crew members.

1993年7月，韓亞一架從首爾出發的波音737飛機在韓國南部城市木浦的機場進場時，在惡劣天氣下撞山，機上64名乘客和4名機組人員遇難。

Following the latest incident, Korea’s transport ministry said it would conduct a special inspection into operations of local airlines until August 25, urging carriers to conduct intensive training for pilots who fly to airports with difficult take-off or landing conditions. It will also inspect the engines and landing systems of Korean Air’s 37 Boeing 777s and Asiana’s remaining 11 Boeing 777s.

最新事故發生後，韓國國土交通部表示，在8月25日之前將對本國航空公司的運營展開專項檢查，同時敦促各航空公司對飛往起降難度大的機場的飛行員進行強化訓練。該部還將檢查大韓航空(Korean Air)的37架波音777和韓亞航空剩下的11架波音777的發動機和着陸系統。

According to ministry data, 115 flight accidents have occurred involving local carriers in the past 10 years, resulting in 23 deaths. There was also an increase in safety failures, which surged from 791 in 2011 to 948 last year.

韓國國土交通部的數據顯示，該國航空公司在過去10年裏發生了115起飛行事故，造成23人死亡。安全故障的次數也有所增加，從2011年的791次大幅增至去年的948次。

Asiana serves 71 cities in 23 countries with a fleet of 80 aircraft, but it has struggled to compete against bigger rival Korean Air. It reported a net loss of Won48.2bn ($42m) in the first quarter, compared with a Won1.9bn loss a year earlier.

韓亞航空的航班網絡覆蓋23個國家的71個城市，擁有80架飛機，但近年在與規模更大的大韓航空的競爭中力不從心。今年第一季度，韓亞航空報告淨虧損482億韓元（合4200萬美元），而去年同期虧損19億韓元。

Analysts said the crash landing could weigh on Asiana’s lucrative business in China, the carrier’s third-largest market, which accounts for about 15 per cent of its overall sales.

分析師們表示，此次降落失事可能拖累韓亞在中國的盈利業務。中國是韓亞的第三大市場，佔該公司總銷售額大約15%。

“Half the passengers on board the crashed plane were Chinese . . . So it is hard to say the negative impact will be shortlived as Chinese transit passengers have other alternative ways to fly to the US,” said Shin Ji-yoon, analyst at KTB Securities.

“失事客機上一半乘客是中國公民……因此很難說負面影響將是短暫的，因爲中國旅客有其它赴美選擇，”KTB Securities分析師Shin Ji-yoon表示。